Browse Articles

Generation of IgM+ B cell-deficient Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated IgM knockout

Abstract Infectious diseases pose significant challenges to Norwegian Atlantic salmon aquaculture. Vaccines are critical for disease prevention; however, a deeper understanding of the immune system is essential to improve vaccine efficacy. Immunoglobulin M (IgM) is the main antibody involved in the systemic immune response of teleosts, including Atlantic salmon. In this study, we used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to knock out the two IgM genes in Atlantic salmon. High-throughput sequencing revealed an average mutagenesis efficiency of 97% across both loci, with a predominance of frameshift mutations (78%). Gene expression analyses demonstrated significantly reduced membrane-bound IgM mRNA levels in head kidney and spleen tissues. Flow cytometry revealed a 78% reduction in IgM+ B cells in peripheral blood, and Western blot analyses showed decreased IgM protein levels in serum. Notably, an upregulation of IgT mRNA was observed, suggesting a potential compensatory mechanism. This work presents the first application of CRISPR/Cas9 to disrupt an immune-related gene in the F0 generation of Atlantic salmon, and lays the foundation for generating a model completely lacking IgM+ B cells which can be used to study the role of B cells and antibodies. This study has implications for advancing immune research in teleosts and for developing strategies to improve salmon health and welfare in aquaculture.

Betula pendula Roth. survival and growth in treeline is affected by genotype and environment

Mechanical properties of modern restorative “bioactive” dental materials - an in vitro study

Identification of biomarkers associated with coronary artery disease and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease by bioinformatics analysis and machine learning

Retraction Note: Establishment of an Acanthamoeba keratitis mouse model confirmed by amoebic DNA amplification

The degree of cross-linking of polyacrylic acid affects the fibrogenicity in rat lungs

Abstract Polyacrylic acid (PAA) with different concentrations of cross-linker was instilled into the trachea of rats to examine the effect of PAA crosslink density on lung disorders. Methods: F344 rats were intratracheally exposed to low and high doses of PAA with cross-linker concentrations of 0.1, 1.0, and 5.0% (CL0.1%, CL1.0%, and CL5.0%, respectively). Rats were sacrificed at 3 days, 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months after exposure. PAA with different cross-linker concentrations caused an increase in neutrophil influx, cytokine-induced neutrophils, and chemotactic factor (CINC) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from 3 days to 1 week after instillation. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity in BALF and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) release in lung tissue were higher in the CL0.1% exposure group during the acute phase. Lung histopathological findings also showed that severe fibrotic changes induced by CL0.1% were greater than those observed in CL1.0% and CL5.0% exposure during the observation period. CL0.1% was associated with more severe lung fibrosis, and a decrease in lung fibrosis was observed with increasing cross-linker concentrations, suggesting that the cross-link density of PAA is a physicochemical feature that affects lung disorders.

Multi-stage refinement network for point cloud completion based on geodesic attention

Machine learning models for predicting interaction affinity energy between human serum proteins and hemodialysis membrane materials

Radon on Mars and the Moon derived from Martian and lunar meteorites

Working capacity level defines the specific impairment profile of the comprehensive ICF core set for multiple sclerosis

Abstract Multiple sclerosis (MS) unfavorably affects working capacity. The Comprehensive International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Core Set for MS (cICF-MS), issued by the World Health Organization, has not yet been extended to evaluate working capacity level (WCL). To evaluate the relative importance of cICF-MS categories in relation to WCL. Persons with MS (PwMS), N = 129, who had been referred to Lithuania’s Disability and Working Capacity Assessment Office for WCL determination, were divided into three groups according to the percentage of remaining WCL (WCL1 had 0–25%, WCL2 had 30–40%, and WCL3 had 45–55%). Data regarding the cICF-MS categories were collected through telephone interviews and patient documentation. Using the fractional ranking method, the mean values of cICF-MS impairment were ranked from the most severely affected to the least affected (rank 1–93). Ranks with the 10 highest mean values of impairment severity in each WCL group were included in a descriptive analysis. In the WCL1 and WCL2 groups, the most-affected cICF-MS categories reflected disability related to gait and motor function. The WCL3 group presented with pain, fatigue, and impairments to visual acuity, psychic stability, urination, and memory. This study has identified specific cICF-MS impairment profiles based on remaining WCL.

Prediction of subsequent vertebral fracture after percutaneous vertebral augmentation using MRI-based vertebral bone quality and CT-based Hounsfield units: a retrospective cross-sectional study

Large language models improve the identification of emergency department visits for symptomatic kidney stones

High-Precision prediction of curling trajectory multivariate time series using the novel CasLSTM approach

A study on the production of extracellular vesicles derived from novel immortalized human placental mesenchymal stromal cells

Synergistic effect of Canarium strictum leaves extract and KI on the corrosion protection of mild steel in 15% HCl solution

Association between airway microbiota and systemic inflammation markers in non-small cell lung cancer patients

Metabolic profiles and potential antioxidant mechanisms of hawk tea

Assessment of Opuntia ficus-indica supplementation on enhancing antioxidant levels

Influence of elevated temperature exposure on the residual compressive strength and radiation shielding efficiency of ordinary concrete incorporating granodiorite and ceramic powders

Abstract This research investigates the potential of utilizing types of construction waste as partial cement replacements within concrete formulations. Notably, granodiorite and ceramic powders were introduced at varying substitution ratios. The impact of these waste materials on the compressive strength and radiation shielding effectiveness of traditional concrete was evaluated under both ambient and elevated temperature conditions. Additionally, several microstructural tests like X-ray diffraction (XRD), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) were conducted to assess the influence of using the optimal replacement ratios of the investigated waste powders on the studied properties of concrete. Results revealed a substantial improvement in the investigated properties of the concrete. Remarkably, a 7% substitution with waste granodiorite powder (WGDP) yielded the optimal mix for compressive strength, exhibiting increases of 24.7%, 26.1%, 22%, and 28% at room temperature, 400 °C, 600 °C, and 800 °C, respectively. Likewise, a 7% replacement with waste ceramic powder (WCP) exhibited quantifiable improvements in compressive strength, with approximately 23.1%, 23.5%, 25.6%, and 32.6% at room temperature, 400 °C, 600 °C, and 800 °C, respectively. For microstructure analysis, XRD analysis confirmed enhanced pozzolanic activity with reduced portlandite and increased calcium silicate hydrate (CSH) formation for the optimal WGDP and WCP mixes compared to the control mix. TGA analysis revealed higher CSH decomposition in modified mixes, indicating greater pozzolanic reaction. Furthermore, density and EDX analyses showed denser microstructures in waste powders-incorporated mixes due to finer particle packing and secondary hydration effect. The radiation shielding investigation show that the optimum WCP mix (C7) enhances the attenuation capability of concrete. The optimum WGP mix (GD7) also contributes positively to attenuation, though to a lesser extent than C7. Ordinary concrete (CO) exhibits the lowest $$\it \:\text{C}\text{M}$$ LAC, indicating its baseline performance in linear attenuation. Thus, the studied CM-concrete samples provide the best protection against fast neutrons which pave the way for the utilization of industrial waste, especially ceramic and granodiorite waste, in enhancing the properties of concrete towards radiation shielding against gamma rays and neutrons.

Investigating time-independent and time-dependent diffusion phenomena using steady-state diffusion MRI

Abstract Diffusion MRI is a leading method to non-invasively characterise brain tissue microstructure across multiple domains and scales. Diffusion-weighted steady-state free precession (DW-SSFP) is an established imaging sequence for post-mortem MRI, addressing the challenging imaging environment of fixed tissue with short T2 and low diffusivities. However, a current limitation of DW-SSFP is signal interpretation: it is not clear what diffusion ‘regime’ the sequence probes and therefore its potential to characterise tissue microstructure. Building on Extended Phase Graphs (EPG), I establish two alternative representations of the DW-SSFP signal in terms of (1) conventional b-values (time-independent diffusion) and (2) encoding power-spectra (time-dependent diffusion). The proposed representations provide insights into how different parameter regimes and gradient waveforms impact the diffusion sensitivity of DW-SSFP. I subsequently introduce an approach to incorporate existing biophysical models into DW-SSFP without the requirement of extensive derivations, with time dependence estimated via a Gaussian phase approximation representation of the DW-SSFP signal. Investigations incorporating free-diffusion and tissue-relevant microscopic restrictions (cylinder of varying radius) give excellent agreement to complementary analytical models and Monte Carlo simulations. Experimentally, the time-independent representation is used to derive Tensor and proof-of-principle NODDI estimates in a whole human post-mortem brain. A final SNR-efficiency investigation demonstrates the theoretical potential of DW-SSFP for ultra-high field microstructural imaging.